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cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
So I noticed the wifi on my iPhone 13 Pro Max is half the speed faster than it is on my 2023 MBP M2 14"
What's the cause for this and whats the fix?
 

splifingate

macrumors 68000
Nov 27, 2013
1,909
1,696
ATL
Too many variables and your lack of info makes this impossible to answer. Could be router settings, distance, MBP settings, method of testing, etc.

Yes; very.

I just tested my 2015 MBP vs. 13-mini using the latest Ookla app connected to the same remote Server (connected via WIFI with Unifi NanoHD attached to an Edgerouter4, connected with ATT Fiber):

297/213 from 2015 MBP (Broadcom BCM43xx (0x14E4, 0x133))
240/273 from iPhone 13-mini

Upon repeated testing, it seems that my MBP consistently achieves greater d/l speeds then the 13-mini, while the reverse it true for u/l *shrugs*
 
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cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
OP:

Post actual examples of tested speeds.
MBP download speeds are around 250-290 Mbps and upload is 20
IPhone download are around 500-550 Mbps and uploads are also 20 Mbps

tested a few times the last few days and its be very consistent, using Google Speed test run and speedtest.net
 

lwilliams

macrumors 6502
Nov 27, 2012
466
242
Athens, GA
I have an iPhone 14 Pro Max, Macbook Pro M2 Pro.

I just tried wi-fi 6 speed test after reading this thread.

I get pretty much the exact same results at Ookla.

I just tried the same thing with 3 different Apple TV boxes. 2 of them are current generation - one is older. I get about 5% less throughput on the two 3rd gen boxes. The older one is about 13% slower.

NOW - I am a 30 year IT pro. So, my home network is highly optimized. Maybe that makes some difference.
 

MacDaddyPanda

macrumors 6502a
Dec 28, 2018
991
1,158
Murica
On both devices is speedtest using the same servers?
My MM M2 = 900Mbps
Iphone 14 PM = 700 Mbps

If Speedtest servers are the same. Check your routers settings.
 
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cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
I have an iPhone 14 Pro Max, Macbook Pro M2 Pro.

I just tried wi-fi 6 speed test after reading this thread.

I get pretty much the exact same results at Ookla.

I just tried the same thing with 3 different Apple TV boxes. 2 of them are current generation - one is older. I get about 5% less throughput on the two 3rd gen boxes. The older one is about 13% slower.

NOW - I am a 30 year IT pro. So, my home network is highly optimized. Maybe that makes some difference.

that could be the case, I am not very tech savy, and some of the questions in here I dont even have answers for.
All I can provide is, both devices are up to date wit the latest version, both are using the 5G network, and I ran both tests using the same 2 methods that I've always ran my speedtests.
 

TracerAnalog

macrumors 6502a
Nov 7, 2012
796
1,462
Try another browser. Sometimes I notice a significant slow down in Safari, only to see full speed again in Firefox. Fiddling with my firewalls usually resolves it for me.
 

Lifeisabeach

macrumors 6502
Dec 4, 2022
363
375
I ran the speed test on google in both devices, both devices were next to each other and the same distant from the router.

I just tried it using Ookla's Speedtest on my iPhone XR and 2020 M1 MBA. For reference, I'm on 500 Mb fiber. My MBA smoked the iPhone. 328/263 down/up on the XR vs 406/441 on the MBA. Neither device were behind a VPN or had anything other than routine background activity going on.

I will share a tip that I had to implement on my MBA a few months ago that may be worth trying. This was to resolve very slow file transfers between my iMac and MBA on my home network, but may have impacted internet activity also.
 

cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
Try another browser. Sometimes I notice a significant slow down in Safari, only to see full speed again in Firefox. Fiddling with my firewalls usually resolves it for me.
did that as well, using Safari and Chrome, same results.
 

A1423

macrumors regular
Jan 18, 2023
179
90
I get 1.1-1.3gbps down using a friends M2 max mbp with 6e or wired using an adapter.

I use fast.com

Using Ookla I get above 900 every time.

My phone 13pm gets between 700 and 940 consistently.

I too have a heavily configured and tweaked system with a 6E AP.
 

A1423

macrumors regular
Jan 18, 2023
179
90
that could be the case, I am not very tech savy, and some of the questions in here I dont even have answers for.
All I can provide is, both devices are up to date wit the latest version, both are using the 5G network, and I ran both tests using the same 2 methods that I've always ran my speedtests.

If both are using the cellular connection, it could be that your phone’s modem has a better connection due it it being internal, and your computer needs an adapter. That adapter could be bottlenecking your speeds.

Are you using your phones hotspot? Or a 5G router?
 

BlueGhost

macrumors member
Dec 30, 2015
57
24
Ohio
I've seen variations in speed based on the time of day and with extreme weather or temperatures. Just glad we (or almost all of us) no longer use dial-up Async, Bisync, SNA/SDLC... Manufacturer of the chips used for wifi in the phones vs. macs may be different.

Background tasks running on a given cell phone or mac may be different (and compete for resources needed in file transfer). ISP may prioritize one device over the other based on how much data has been transferred in the billing month (most have caps, above the cap they degrade performance for a given device or set of devices), or which plan you have for a given device, or how they tune their network. At one time, there was talk about ISPs charging more to give certain recipients higher service levels (don't know if that ever happened). Internet routing algorithms used by the network ISPs and software running on different models/brands of network switches/routers may be sending data through different routes in load balancing. If the shortest/fastest path is congested, a given session may be routed thru a much longer (and perhaps slower) path. If the path for a given session or packet encounters a large number of retransmissions (due to detected errors), that will also negatively affect the file transmission speed.

I don't use Comcast, but below is a link to an article about speed tests from their site. If you want to dig in more, there is probably tons more reading available online, including on sites run by CISCO and other switch builders.
 
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zero.id

macrumors newbie
Apr 7, 2021
14
16
MBP download speeds are around 250-290 Mbps and upload is 20
IPhone download are around 500-550 Mbps and uploads are also 20 Mbps

tested a few times the last few days and its be very consistent, using Google Speed test run and speedtest.net
Isn't the case that the MB is connected to 5GHz and the phone to 2,4GHz WiFi?
 

Fishrrman

macrumors Penryn
Feb 20, 2009
29,248
13,322
OP:

Something to try if you want.

1. Open Network preferences
2. Click on the line for wifi
3. At the bottom, click the "-" sign to DELETE the wifi (yes, do this)
4. Now, shut down (all the way off). Then reboot
5. Go back to the Network preferences
6. Now, click the "+" sign and ADD BACK a wifi connection

We're not finished yet.
Click on the new wifi entry.
Click on "advanced"
Do you see a "hardware" setting?
If so, click it.
Now, we're going to make a temporary change, and then set things as they were.
Where it says "configure", choose "manually" if possible.
Now, do you get a popup for "MTU"???
If so, set to SOMETHING ELSE other than "standard".
Then, SET IT BACK to standard.
Then switch back from "manually" to "automatic".
Click OK and then click "apply" in the network panel.

Now try the speedtest again.
If it changes, let us know.
 
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Allen_Wentz

macrumors 68040
Dec 3, 2016
3,346
3,796
USA
So I noticed the wifi on my iPhone 13 Pro Max is half the speed faster than it is on my 2023 MBP M2 14"
What's the cause for this and whats the fix?
On my friend's WiFi:
Ookla: 2016 MBP; ~22 Mbps down, ~5 Mbps up.
Ookla: iPhone 14 Pro iOS 16.6; ~SAME.

On my home office WiFi 6E:
Ookla: 2016 MBP Monterey 12.6.7; ~668 Mbps down, ~508 Mbps up.
Ookla: M2 Max MBP Ventura 13.5; ~932 Mbps down, ~928 Mbps up.
Ookla: iPhone 14 Pro iOS 16.6; ~613 Mbps down, ~395 Mbps up

Browser: Safari
 
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HawkTheHusky1902

macrumors 6502a
Jun 26, 2023
666
491
Berlin, Germany
On my friend's WiFi:
Ookla: 2016 MBP; ~22 Mbps down, ~5 Mbps up.
Ookla: iPhone 14 Pro iOS 16.6; ~SAME.

On my home office WiFi 6E:
Ookla: 2016 MBP Monterey 12.6.7; ~668 Mbps down, ~508 Mbps up.
Ookla: M2 Max MBP Ventura 13.5; ~932 Mbps down, ~928 Mbps up.
Ookla: iPhone 14 Pro iOS 16.6; ~613 Mbps down, ~395 Mbps up

Browser: Safari
That's some fast WI-Fi on the M2 Max MBP! I'm lucky to get 2 or 3 mbps down here at home lol...and virtually nothing up...Even right next to the router!
 

cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
So I notice almost everyone has a faster speed on their newer MBP vs iphone, while I have the opposite.
My MBP is the 2023 base model and my iphone is the 13 MP.
this is very strange, I might have to contact Apple maybe.

I will try some of the things posted above and see if I can do it.
 

HawkTheHusky1902

macrumors 6502a
Jun 26, 2023
666
491
Berlin, Germany
So I notice almost everyone has a faster speed on their newer MBP vs iphone, while I have the opposite.
My MBP is the 2023 base model and my iphone is the 13 MP.
this is very strange, I might have to contact Apple maybe.

I will try some of the things posted above and see if I can do it.
Especially since the M2 MBPs have the latest and fastest Wi-Fi capability, which includes Wi-Fi 6E, so this is really strange.
 

cramazing

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2012
356
57
I just did some additional testing using a M1 MBP 16 and the download was just slightly better around 300 down and same 20 up. However, I asked my wife to test on her 7 year old Windows laptop and she got 400 down and 20 up, so that was really annoying to see. Some thing doesnt seem right here.

I plugged both MBP to an ethernet cable and got over 500Mbps down and over 20 up
 
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